Seasonal Poetry Prompts for Spring and Summer

Poets have a long tradition of honoring the seasons by writing odes to them. Poetry celebrates spring and summer for bringing renewal to the land and warmth to our lives.

Rebirth is a common theme in poetry, so the spring season, with its fresh skies and new shoots, is a rejuvenating source of inspiration for composition.

Summer is packed with sights, smells, and sounds: splashing water and fresh lemonade; hot dogs from the fair; and bike rides on the beach.

All of these things, and many more, find their way into poetry that pays tribute to the seasons that we enjoy during the warmer half of the year: spring and summer.

Poetry Prompts for Spring

Below, you’ll find three lists of words. Choose one of the lists and write a poem using all the words from the list. You can also mix and match words from different lists or try writing a poem using all the words from all the lists.

Some of the words in the list relate to spring but some do not and you’ll have to find a way to make the poem (and the words in it) about spring.

Good luck!

Flower Buds

Blue-Gray Skies

Mud and Muck

pepper
cream
titanic
lure
smash

telling
rinse
foul
harbor
horses

clean
squeak
scoop
woolly
bully

Poetry Prompts for Summer

Below, you will find five lists of words. Each list pertains to one of the five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. Choose one word from each list and write a poem that includes all five senses. If you want to write a poem that appeals entirely to one sense, simply choose the list that corresponds (for example, the SMELL list) and use all the words on that list for your poem. Or, to really challenge yourself, try writing a single poem using all the words from all the lists. That ought to really tickle the senses!

Sight

Sound

Smell

Taste

Touch

Beach ball

Surfer

Tourist

Swimsuits

Sunglasses

Buckets & Spades

Ice cream

Boardwalk

Jelly fish

Lifeguard

Boats

Beach bags

Fireflies

June bugs

Clear blue skies

Cotton-white clouds

Splashing

Outdoor concerts

Waves crashing

Thunder

Music blaring

Seagulls

Lawn mowers

Fans (A/C)

Children playing

Ice cream truck

Bees

Barbecue

Chlorine

Suntan lotion

Coconut

Ripe peaches

Wildflowers

Freshly cut grass

Parched grass

Summer rain

Ice cream

Watermelon

Plums

Grapes

Shaved ice

Popsicles

Iced tea

Lemonade

Cotton candy

Popcorn

Fish & Chips

Salt water taffy

Vine-ripe tomatoes

Sea (salt) water

Strawberries and cream

Blackberry pie

(Gritty) sand

Feet in water

Flip-flops

Hot concrete, pavement

Warm, hot breezes

Freshly watered (or cut) grass

Water balloons

Sun on your face

Share Your Poetry Prompts (or Your Poems)

If you write a poem using these prompts, feel free to post it in the comments. Or, post it on your blog and then come back here and drop a link.

Keep writing (and reading) poetry!

If you have any poetry prompts or writing exercises to share, feel free to post them in the comments or send them in as a guest post. And if you have any words to add to these lists, share them as well.

About Melissa DonovanMelissa Donovan is a website designer and copywriter. She writes fiction and poetry and is the founder and editor of Writing Forward, a blog packed with creative writing tips and ideas.

this is a poem working off the ‘hear’ prompt words/I’m working at a library terminal under time constraints/I, as usual, beg your indulgence –

yesterday was thunder, rain, heaving masses of
dark clouds
but today the sun dispels all doubts
it rose early
drying the grass by noon
lawn mowers sound
from overlooking subdivisions
music is blaring from convertibles
as folks lounge on the lawn,
the beach
eating, drinking, waiting
for a series of outdoor concerts
advertised for today
(including one Local Legend – the
Prodigal Sun comes home!)
the fans are all here
braving the heat
and the tedium of waiting
seagull calls implore for food
the sound of children playing
splashing in the water
some gather about
the ice cream truck
walk away dripping
others prance in the grass
unaware of the menace of
buzzing bees
hidden deep in flowers
one boy steps down decisively
instinct of self-preservation
sharp pain
the boy hops up squeals
protests to all who will listen
the pain
there’s nothing else but
the pain
why won’t someone do something?
the adults laugh
perhaps remembering
one of the band members of the
opening act
is tuning his guitar
and
looks out upon the sea
of people
spots the tragedy unfolding
smiles leans into the mike
says,
“Boy, it’s a hot one, eh?
Just setting up here, folks.
Be ready in a minute.
I thank you for your patience.
We love you.
We love all of you.
Get ready to rock…
but just hold on a sec
okay?”

I reckon I’ve completely missed the boat on this, but it was such a lovely prompt, I couldn’t resist. Here it is then, and I’m terribly sorry if I’ve bothered you in some internet slumber and dragged you unwillingly over here.

Spring, blue-gray skies.

The harbour is cold,
This morning.
Colder than it should be,
You reckon, for a proper spring.
Foul scents rise from the
Market stands,
Wafting in the air above
Dead fish whose
Eyes are brown and glazed and
Hard to look at for long,
You find.
Horses trot by,
Pulling rich folk in shiny
White carriages
And you find yourself wondering
How many rinses it’s had,
And how much they
(the rich folk, with their
Bright silks and warm furs)
Pay, to keep it like that.
You walk on, telling
Yourself that it’s
Best to keep moving,
Keep the blood pumping
Through your veins and
Not to think too hard,
On things like that.
The sky is gray,
This morning,
And you wish for
Bright silks and warm furs
And a dead fish, too,
If only you had a fire to cook it over.
Mostly, you wish for
Blue skies, and for spring
To come properly
At last.

I don’t mind at all Kenna. I keep the comments open so that people can continue using these prompts and participating in the conversations. There are no expiration dates here! Thanks so much for sharing the lovely poem you wrote